Where The Broken Lay
by SoraX1789
Summary: Everything is not as it seems back home in Kanto. Coming home from Kalos with a heavy, burdening loss on his shoulders, Ash can't wait to be surrounded by his friends and family. The surprise Ash came home to wasn't desired. This story can also be found on Wattpad under the same username, SoraX1789


It had been a rough last couple of days for Ash and Pikachu. Losing to Alain was hard on them, and yeah, it crushed their spirits, but that's not what had them bawling their eyes out.

Ash didn't even want to remember the last few day that'd passed, let alone recite them. After those events, the plane ride home was a lot more unbearable, and he just couldn't wait to get home.

Tears sprung back in his eyes, reliving the memories once again. Sighing shakily, Ash wiped his eyes. "Well, there's no need to worry... I just... I just..." Ash trailed, more tears forming in his eyes.

"Pikapi, chu..." Pikachu licked near Ash's right eye, trying to stop his best friend from crying. Pikachu didn't stop comforting Ash on the way to Kanto, and he wasn't going to stop midway either.

Ash blinked and turned his eyes to see his partner. "Sorry, Pikachu..." Ash muttered softly, wiping his left eye.

"Pika?" Pikachu questioned, tilting his head in confusion, which only made Ash laugh bitterly.

Soon after, the laughter died down and was replaced with a sigh. "You're trying so hard to keep me happy, thank you..." Ash shook his head as he began to pet Pikachu's head.

Pikachu smiled happily. "Cha!" Pikachu leaned into Ash's hand, moving his head slightly to the rhythm that Ash was using.

Ash sighed and continued walking to his house, still petting Pikachu in the process. "I hope things go well at home," and even though he was talking to himself, Pikachu heard him.

"Chu..." Pikachu rubbed the side of his face into Ash's in an attempt to comfort him, which made Ash laugh.

When they reached the house, Ash was nervous, and Pikachu was side hugging him from his shoulder.

When he opened the door everything went silent. The chatter, the noise, everything. Ash gulped, the suspense was high.

"Ash... We all have something to say," everyone was there, his old friends, his new friends, his Pokémon, his rivals, almost everyone he knew. How they all fit in the house, he had no idea.

Ash tensed, thinking it had something to do with how he lost the Kalos league, and he braced himself for that.

"We want to start off like this, we wish we never met you," Brock started, flexing his hands.

That was something that Ash really wasn't ready to hear, and he definitely didn't have time to brace himself for that.

Ash turned to his own mother, who simply glared at him. "I wish you were never born, maybe then, my husband would still be here, loving me!" Delia's childish words cut at Ash and made Pikachu flinch at the thought of his partner not being alive.

Suddenly, Professor Oak stood up from his position on the couch. "Ash, all of your Pokémon have decided to go to your mother," he said, gesturing to all of the Pokémon that were standing around.

Pikachu glared at the betraying Pokémon furiously, sparks discharging from his cheeks, hiding behind Ash with his head peeking out from Ash's neck.

"Wait, what are you all talking about?!" Ash asked frantically, sweat pooling at the sides of his face.

"We are tired of being tied down by you! May and I could've won a contest if your magnet for trouble didn't start up!" Dawn was furious, and her words struck at Ash.

"What are you—? You're the ones that followed me!" Ash shouted, Pikachu nodding in return, growling at some of the Pokémon that tried to take him away from Ash.

"Hah, Ash, just admit it, you would've gotten down on your knees and begged for their forgiveness if they tried to leave you." Trip argued, an ugly expression on his face.

Ash gritted his teeth, biting down his tears. "No, stop, you're wrong, why are you all doing this? Is this some sort of prank?" Ash knew that Pikachu was upset with the way he was trying to hide from the large group.

Right after, a small chuckle responded. "Ash, dear, I really didn't want to go this far, but you leave me no choice. You see, sweetie, we all want you to give up on your dream, give up on your life, and hand Pikachu over to us," Delia stopped to catch her breath while reaching out to Pikachu.

"I'm certain Pikachu likes us a lot more than you anyway. I'm sure he's very disappointed, just like us, because even he knows that you're weak and puny," those words, that came from his own mother, broke him. Slicing him from all over, his heart almost stopped beating.

Pikachu fully showed himself and electricity surrounded him. "Pika! Pikachu, pikapi!" Pikachu was furious, and his tail began to light up, shocking everyone except Ash, who was still trying to process the information he was given.

"See Ash, Pikachu wants you dead too!" when May shouted this, Ash ran for it, not caring about their shouts, some saying 'Die!' and some saying 'Don't come back!'.

After about an hour of running nonstop, Ash stopped abruptly, spinning his head to see Pikachu barely holding on.

Ash teared up. "I'm sorry Pikachu..." Ash picked up Pikachu, being nervously gentle with the mouse Pokemon.

Pikachu tilted his head, his right ear bending sideways. "Pi?" Pikachu nudged Ash with his hand before placing his head on Ash's chest, waiting for him to answer.

"I, uh, didn't give you a chance to stay with them. I can take you back if you want, I won't get mad... You should get to make your own decisions..." Ash looked down, biting his lip.

Ash was about to set Pikachu down but Pikachu wasn't having any of that. "Pika! Pikachu pi!" Pikachu was upset with Ash for thinking that, but he couldn't put the blame on Ash after what they had said to him. It gave Pikachu the shivers.

Pikachu climbed up Ash's arm, making him yelp in surprise. Pikachu then nuzzled the side of his face into Ash's, whining softly. "Chuuu..."

Ash knew that tears were streaming down his face by then, but the message that Pikachu was trying to get across to him reached. "You're going to... Stay with me?"

Pikachu nodded his head happily, placing his head on the side of his best friend's face. Ash giggled a bit, even if it was kind of bitter. "Pika!"

Instantly, more tears flew down Ash's face, and he scooped up Pikachu, hugging him close while Pikachu just returned the hug joyfully. "I love you so much, Pikachu!"

Pikachu let out sparks of happiness, rubbing his face into Ash's chest. "Pikapi, pikachu!" then Pikachu had tears form in his eyes.

Ash noticed and pet the top of Pikachu's head, holding him tighter. Pikachu leaned up to Ash's face and licked it, trying to comfort him, succeeding to a fair extent.

Suddenly, a bright light blinded them, before a figure was visible. It had a white aura that made Ash and Pikachu overwhelmed.

When the light finally faded, Ash and Pikachu were shocked to see a white Pokemon that they had only heard of in legends. It was Arceus, the Alpha Pokémon.

"A-Arceus!?"

"Pika pika!?" Ash and Pikachu were both shocked out of their minds to see the God of all Pokémon in front of them.

"Arceus!" the Pokémon roared, stomping it's foot down in pride before kicking the dirt up. Ash and Pikachu were trained in their spots, staring in astonishment.

"N-No way, I thought you were just a legend!" Ash exclaimed in awe, falling to his knees as fear took him over.

Arceus stepped closer, and Pikachu began to emit electricity to protect his partner, which made Arceus chuckle.

The Alpha Pokémon sucked in a breath and then exhaled, a strange blue light surrounded Ash and Pikachu, who began to panic. "Listen, Chosen One, I would like to make a proposal, so I've done something very special for you and your very faithful Pikachu."

Ash took a double take. "Wait, I can hear you?!" as Ash was freaking out, so was Pikachu, who stared at Ash in bewilderment.

"Yes, and you can also hear your partner, Pikachu," Arceus said, leaning down to face Pikachu.

Pikachu, however, was still freaking out about his pal being able to hear Arceus, and now he finds out that Ash can hear him as well? He did always find it strange that Pokémon could hear humans, but humans couldn't hear them, but now Ash was granted the ability to talk to him?

Pikachu and Ash looked at each other in wonder. Ash turned his head again and looked at Arceus in question. "Why would you do that, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Because you have a heart of gold, and your pal Pikachu noticed that," Arceus explained, moving his head to Pikachu.

Pikachu smiled and hugged Ash's arm. "Yeah!" Pikachu said and shocked Ash completely. Sure, it sounded like Pikachu, but he could actually understand what he was trying to say.

"Now, as I was saying, I want to train you and take you to a faraway place named Alola. Trust me when I say, you are no ordinary human being. So will you take the offer?" Arceus explained, still in his bent down position.

Ash was amazed by the fact that he had gotten recognized by the Alpha Pokémon, and so he could only shake his head—yes—with Pikachu.

Arceus then stood up from his position and walked a little closer. "Alright then, let's start with better introductions. I'm Arceus, the Alpha Pokémon, and I acknowledge you as the chosen one," Arceus bowed his head, showing a smile.

For a while, Ash was shocked, but then he shook his head and pumped his fist in the air, a grin on his face while Pikachu was ecstatic. "Thanks! I'm Ash... Ketchum... From, uh, Pallet Town, and this is my partner, Pikachu," Ash gestured to the said Pokémon.

"It's nice to meet you Arceus!" Ash said, pausing for a moment, he decided to ask Arceus something on his mind. "Um, are you really okay with me being the chosen one?"

Arceus nodded its head and smiled down at Ash and Pikachu, the smaller Pokémon staring at the Alpha Pokémon in awe.

Suddenly, Ash grinned, excitement overflowing. "Thank you so much!" he shouted, jumping in excitement, Pikachu smiling happily.

"I'm going to give you and Pikachu a few more gifts, but you'll find them out later," Arceus breathed in and blew out red sparkles of light, and it surrounded Pikachu and Ash once again.

Ash and Pikachu looked around them and was overpowered by the amazing sensation that filled them. "Whoa, what is this?" Ash asked, staring at Arceus in confusion.

Arceus laughed at the curiosity the boy and his Pikachu were showing. "As I said before, it's a gift."

Ash smiled at Arceus. "Thanks so much, you're such an amazing Pokémon!" Ash exclaimed, and Pikachu nodded in agreement.

Quickly, Arceus turned his head, a pink dust forming on his face. "It's very nice of you to say," Arceus turned his head to them, the blush gone. "Now would you like to train? I'm sure you and your Pikachu would like to find out what the gift does."

Ash and Pikachu looked at each other before looking back at Arceus. "Alright! Of course, we would!"

Pikachu nodded excitedly, smiling at Arceus. "Yeah, let's go!" Pikachu clung to Ash's shoulder in excitement, watching Arceus laugh at them.

"Well then, get on," Arceus bent down and waited patiently for the two to climb on, yawning due to not getting a whole lot of sleep.

Ash and Pikachu didn't hesitate, and climbed on the back of Arceus, claiming that it was cool how Arceus could also fly.

Arceus gave them a warning that he was about to take off, and the two braced their selves for flight.

They were off with a zoom, and Ash and Pikachu were amazed at the view below them. "Whoa, isn't this cool, Pikachu?" Ash questioned, looking down at the far away ground.

"Yeah!" Pikachu climbed on top of Ash's head, being careful not to fall due to the winds that surrounded them.

When they reached their destination, Ash and Pikachu realized where they were. "Hey, this is that closed off part of the forest, are we allowed to be here?" Ash asked Arceus, who was walking over to the less grassy part of the place.

Arceus turned around and faced Ash. "Of course. This was once my sleeping ground," Arceus explained, digging something from under his paw.

Ash and Pikachu noticed this and walked over to him, staring at the ground that was being dug at. "What're you doing?" Ash asked curiously, pondering the many things he could be doing.

"I'm finding something that I buried here long ago," Arceus explained, still digging in the dirt.

"Long ago?" Pikachu questioned, tilting his head to the right while clinging to Ash's forearm.

Arceus nodded and looked up. "Yes, over a hundred years ago," Ash and Pikachu looked astonished while Arceus looked back down. "I buried it because it was very important that it didn't get into the wrong hands, one of them being Team Flare."

Ash and Pikachu flinched at that name. "Wait, you know them?" Ash asked, a shocked look on his face.

Arceus nodded and replied. "Yes, I've been watching over the world this whole time during my absence." Ash and Pikachu both let out a sound of amazement.

Suddenly, Arceus stopped digging and pulled out a black watch that had some side buttons and a flat mini screen. "Aha! This is the Omnidex. I'm giving it to you," he said, and presented it to Ash.

"Whoa," Ash took the Omnidex and inspected it, looking between it and Arceus. "You're giving it to me? Why?"

Arceus chuckled joyfully. "Haven't I already told you? Because you have a heart of gold. Never in my life have I even seen someone with a golden heart as gold as yours. This will also allow you to catch Pokémon, and them not go back to the lab. Instead, they will be stored in the watch, and you can switch your Pokémon as you please."

Ash blinked and turned away, grinning at the object before slipping it onto his left wrist. "Thanks, I'll cherish it," he replied, turning back to Arceus.

Arceus nodded and then looked at Pikachu. "Now then, I think it's time to train," Arceus said, now Pikachu was pumped for training. After all, so was Ash.

The Pokémon then led the pair over to the grassy field. "So what are we doing?" Ash couldn't help but Ask.

Arceus began to explain. "You, Ash, have the power of Aura. So we will practice so that you can utilize that. After, we'll train for you and Pikachu to be in sync in battle. Next will be physical training for the both of you. I will train you both for a month and then we will fly to Alola, alright?"

Ash and Pikachu stared at each other for a moment before looking back at Arceus and nodding happily. "Thank you so much, Arceus," Ash spoke, smiling softly at Arceus.

Arceus simply smiled at Ash and led them to a less grassy area of the place they were at. Arceus focused his energy to his forehead and suddenly and blue sphere appeared.

Ash and Pikachu jumped in recognition. "That's the skill the Lucario and Riolu used," Ash said, stunned out of words.

Arceus chuckled heartily. "This is called Aura. Due to your pure heart, you have the capability of creating and seeing Aura," Arceus explained, sending the ball of light flying to the ground, making sure it wouldn't hurt Ash and Pikachu.

Smoke arose with a loud boom and when the fog dissipated Ash and Pikachu were coughing lightly from choking on the dirty smog.

When said duo opened their eyes they witnessed a decent sized crater in front of them. "Whoa," Pikachu muttered, and sparks of curiosity came from his cheeks.

The Alpha Pokemon laughed loudly, making Ash and Pikachu confused. "If that was surprising, then let me tell you that I was only using a fifth of the power that you can use." Ash blinked, and Pikachu followed the same action.

"What?! No way! That's so cool!" Ash shouted pumping his fist up into the air. Pikachu put his paw up as well.

The legendary Pokémon simply smiled. "Would you like to learn how? It may not be easy, but it will be worth it," he said, walking closer to Ash and Pikachu.

Ash nodded his head excitedly. "Yeah of course!" Pikachu and Ash fist bumped, and Arceus chuckled lightly.

"Okay. To begin with, let's start with the basics," Arceus walked close to Ash and Pikachu before clearing his throat.

Arceus crouched with his eyes closed as if he were concentrating. "First, you want to focus all of your energy in one place," Arceus waited for Ash to follow instructions.

Ash pulled his hands together to form a triangle, relaxing his fingers to make the triangle loose. "Like this?" Ash questioned, closing his eyes and letting his energy shift to the middle of his hands.

Quickly, yet very faintly, you could see a small, dim light form in-between Ash's hands, before Ash opened his eyes in shock of the force that was in his hands.

"Whoa!" Pikachu exclaimed, climbing up to Ash's shoulder. Pikachu pointed at Ash's hands. "Do it again!"

Ash chuckled lightly, before reaching his hand out to pet Pikachu. "You liked that buddy?" he asked quietly, a smile forming on his face, small but genuine.

Pikachu nodded with enthusiasm and Arceus went up to the excited Pikachu. "You too, can do that Pikachu. With the help of training, of course," Arceus explained, making Ash and Pikachu jump together.

"Now Ash, focus just as you did before, but make sure you don't snap out of focus," Arceus said, nudging his head toward Pikachu as if to signify for him to follow as well.

Because of how in sync they were, Pikachu was able to notice a force between his hands as well. They didn't stop until they were able to tell that the force was strong, and then opened their eyes to see a blue and white wispy ball in the middle of their hands.

Ash suddenly grinned in excitement. Looking over to Arceus. "This is it right?" he asked with joy, ecstatic that he could do such a thing while Pikachu too was staring at the ball he made in amazement.

"Yes, it is, but this is only part one of training. Next is training you and your Pikachu's synchronizing effect with one another," Arceus informed, backing up slightly.

Pikachu and Ash looked at each other before looking back at Arceus. "Yeah!" Arceus led them to the grassy patch of his den and told them each where to stand.

"Now... Run in place!" Arceus shouted, slightly shocking Pikachu and Ash, but at the same time, they started running in place.

"Okay, very good. Now jump!" the exercises went on and on, but neither of them cared. Hours of training passed, and Arceus finally made them stop, directing them over to him.

"Alright. This is the last part of the training for the day." Arceus used Telekinesis to reveal a small, matte red bracelet-like item and slipped in onto Ash's right wrist, in which it fit perfectly. Then, he revealed a strange, white colored gem shaped like a star with a Zen symbol centered in the middle, and another gem shaped like Pikachu's tail with the same color scheme as Pikachu's tail, and a lightning bolt in the middle. Ash and Pikachu were confused, but Arceus began to explain.

"The thing on your wrist is a Z-Ring. It's very special, and tailored so that only you can wear it, though the same can be said about the Omnidex. These two crystals, namely Z-Crystals, will be inserted inside of your Z-Ring for protection, but you can take them out and insert them into your Z-Ring at anytime." Arceus stopped, looking at the Z-Ring on his wrist.

"When you use their properties, you can use moves that were once impossible. These two gems are the only one's that your Z-Ring can hold, but they unlock every move you need. Now, would you like to test a Z-Move?" Arceus questioned, staring at the shocked Ash and Pikachu, who bounced up at the word Z-Move. "I'll take that as a yes."

Moving into position, Arceus told them the rules to Z-Moves. "You and your partner must be in sync, the more synchronization, the more power," Arceus paused, seeing the determination in both of their eyes. "In almost every case, the movements have to be preset movements. If you two can, you could think of a move set for Pikachu's new move, though it may take time," Arceus said, knowing the two would never back down from a challenge.

"Of course! Right, buddy?" Ash asked, looking toward Pikachu, who nodded his head and shouted in agreement.

Arceus continued. "Alright. Do you want to start simple or try the new move right away?" he already knew the answer, but he asked anyway.

"The new move!" Ash and Pikachu shouted and the same time, both having a grin on their face.

Arceus shook his head with a smile and spoke again. "Okay. I'll leave you two alone for a moment to work out the moves."

With that, Arceus left, and Ash and Pikachu fell silent. "Pikachu?" Ash called quietly.

Pikachu looked over and answered just as silently. "Yeah, Ash?"

"Why did you stay?" Ash couldn't help but ask. Everyone else had wanted him to quit, to be far away from him. His friends of more than three years, even his own mom.

Pikachu frowned and climbed up Ash's arm, and this time, Ash didn't flinch, and Pikachu was glad that there was some forward progress, but he still wanted to assure his best friend that he would always be there for him, and now he could. "Ash, I would stay even if you committed murder. I look up to you, and you are my first and best friend. No one I've ever met can replace you. I don't care if I'm even in battles, I just want to be with you," Pikachu was tearing up, but Ash's tears were already dripping off of his face as sobs shook his entire form.

Ash wrapped him arms around Pikachu and pulled him close, sobbing in low frequencies as Pikachu nuzzled closer. "I love you so much..." Ash cried through his tears, noticing small sparks flying similar to before, this time a bit bigger in size.

Smiling, Pikachu allowed himself to rest in his trainer's arms, hugging back to the best of his abilities. "I love you, too."

Sniffling, Ash gave a tiny smile to Pikachu, smiled back in return. "Okay, lets practice on the move, huh?" Ash put Pikachu down.

"Yeah!" Pikachu responded immediately. They moved their positions so that it was like the two were in a match. "What should we do?" Pikachu asked, unsure of what they should do.

Ash smiled a bigger smile than the last, completely genuine. "We go with the flow. Think of something special," Ash inserted the Pikachu-tail shaped gem into the Z-Ring and then hoped for the best.

Pikachu already had something in mind, as did Ash. Without a second thought, they both shouted the name of their skill in unison. "Thunder Clap!" Pikachu and Ash took a side-step to the left, and then to the right with unimaginable speed. Then they clapped their hands and went backwards swiftly, following that up by clapping their hands twice and going forward, and then clapping once more.

At first, they thought nothing happened, when suddenly, Pikachu noticed a spark of unidentified energy course through him. "H-Huh?"

"What's wrong Pikachu?" just as Ask finished speaking, Pikachu whimpered and let out a shockingly huge lightning bolt that sparkled with a white gleam, almost like a firecracker.

It had no aim, and almost hit Ash a few times. The blast went on for a few seconds, and each one was blinding. "Pikachu?" Ash called, a little confused at the big move.

"A-Ash... Ugh..." Pikachu coughed through the smoke, struggling to stand and Ash scooped him into his arms.

"Pikachu! Are you alright buddy?!" Ash asked, a bit of panic in his voice as he clutched Pikachu close to him.

Forcing himself up from the move, Pikachu put a reassuring paw on Ash's hand. "I'm fine..." Suddenly, Arceus flew in, a worried look on his face.

Arceus stared at the destruction and Pikachu before walking up to the pair. Sensing Ash's worry, Arceus tried to calm him. "It's alright Ash, you and Pikachu did just fine. In fact you did better than most trainers with Z-Moves. Most Pokémon pass out once they use a Z-Move for the first time."

Ash stared down at Pikachu who was smiling at him with an exhausted look. "Pikachu..." Ash scooped him up and looked at Arceus. "Um, can we get some rest?"

"Of course. We will continue your training until you think you're ready to move on."

They did just that the next day, and all the other days, until a month passed and finally Ash is at the maximum limit of his training that Arceus can give him, which was only the powers that he could muster, meaning he wasn't really done training, but they wanted to make sure they weren't bothering Arceus.

He had no time to heal his physical and mental scars due to all of the training, and Pikachu never resolved his trust issues, but their training was done, and Arceus had done so much for them.

"You're sure?" Arceus had tried to ask, but Ash nodded regardless. Arceus sighed and began to speak about Alola. "In Alola, some Pokémon have shifted forms, such as Raichu and Meowth. There are only Island Challenges so far, all are a series of tests, and a Totem Guardian Pokémon protecting each one. Your best bet for finding a place to stay is if you go to the Pokémon School. Try to avoid the school founder, Samson Oak until you think you can face the similarities of the two..."

Ash bit his lip before he sighed. "Okay. Thank you," Ash commented.

All Arceus did was smile. "You're welcome," Pikachu hopped onto Ash's shoulder with a smile. They had learned a lot through Arceus. "If you ever need me, just call."

Ash grinned along with Pikachu, and Arceus chuckled before bowing his head and touching the twos hands with his head. Everything went dark.

When the two finally came to, they were standing on the shoreline of a beach. Ash took in a breath of air and then shouted for the world to hear.

"Hello, Alola!"

-

One chapter in, and I'm already in store for a rewrite. There are plenty of novice mistakes, and things that I've wanted to change. Some features will stay the same, like how many people actually betrayed him, and how only Pikachu stayed. his destination is still Alola, but most of the other stuff will be changed.

(you can skip the rest, it's just an old, lengthy author note, smh)

End. So... How was it? Ash and Pikachu's conversation may be confusing at first, because around people, Ash can still understand him, but I'll be using Poké-speech. Also, Pikachu does not have a human voice. Ash can just understand his Pikachu's Poké-speech.

So... A tidbit about the watch. The watch allows him to store all of his Pokémon, which mean he can carry all of his Pokémon. However, he will only use six at a time during battles. Confirmed Pokémon are: Litten, Rockruff.


End file.
